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Obama bound to his faith

Posted: Sunday, July 06, 2008

ST. LOUIS - Sen. Barack Obama declared Saturday to a roaring crowd of religious African-Americans that they should have no doubt of his commitment to his Christian faith, his nation or his political principles.

In an address filled with religious and patriotic imagery, the presumptive Democratic nominee for president told delegates attending a national conference here of the African Methodist Episcopal Church that his career and his life revolved around his belief that "I won't be fulfilling the Lord's Will unless I'm doing the Lord's work."

That commitment would continue to influence his performance and his politics if he wins the White House, Obama said, igniting repeated cheers and standing ovations as he reaffirmed his proposals to expand on faith-based government initiatives begun by President Bush.

And in a pointed jab at the national news media, Obama singled out denomination leaders who he said could attest to reporters that "I've been talking about this for a couple of years now. Don't think this is news."

Among other things, Obama said that most of the nation's challenges "of war and poverty, joblessness and homelessness, violence on the streets and in the public schools ... are not simple technical problems in search of a perfect 10-point plan. They are also moral problems rooted in social indifference and individual callousness."

Churches have a role in tackling such issues, he explained, much as they had roles in the past fighting various injustices - from the oppression that the American colonies felt under British rule, to the battles to abolish slavery at home and expand rights for women.